Laos, officially the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), is a rapidly growing developing economy at the heart of Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma, Cambodia, China, Thailand, and Vietnam. Laos’ economic growth over the last decade averaged just below eight percent, placing Laos amongst the fastest growing economies in the world.
The history of land rights in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), hereafter referred to as Laos, is a history of customary land tenure systems which remain the most prevalent form of land tenure. As social systems, land tenure systems in Laos have been affected by and have adapted to external forces such as neighboring kingdoms, colonialization, geopolitics and war, migration, and global economic trends. Ongoing rapid changes in national socioeconomic conditions and domestic political goals continue to alter the customary tenure landscape.
The Cambodian government allowed 1,204,750 hectares as economic land concession (ELC) to 118 local and international companies. Global Witness reported that 2.6 million ha had been given in 272 ELCs, mainly for rubber plantations. Many concessionaires do not comply with their contracts, nor with existing land and forest laws. Government revenues from timber exports are extremely low. Deforestation, and removal of luxury timbers has increased dramatically. Land concessions rob local communities of their income from non-timber forest products.
This paper examines and discusses issues concerning the smallholder teak forestry in taungya style in southern Laos. The Provincial department of Agriculture and Forestry of Champasack Province introduced teak forestry for two reasons; poverty reduction and reforestation. We have conducted surveys in a rural village which has typical features of population size and ethnic. Questionnaire survey and field survey with GPS were conducted to collect household-level information and to produce an accurate land-use map respectively.
The Annual Country Reviews reflect upon current land issues in the Mekong Region, and has been produced for researchers, practitioners and policy advocates operating in the field. Specialists have been selected from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam to briefly answer the following two questions:
1. What are the most pressing issues involving land governance in your country?
2. What are the most important issues for the researcher on land?
The rapid economic growth in Lao PDR over the last two decades has been driven by the natural resource sectors and commercialization in the agriculture sector. Rural landscapes are being transformed over the past decade from land use mosaics of subsistence and smallholder farms to large-scale plantations dominated by a few commercial crops.
A Decree to promote tree planting, regeneration and protection of forests among people in order to increase and enrich forest areas in Lao PDR. The 28 Articles are divided into 5 Chapters: General Provisions (I); Legitimate Persons to Receive Land Allocations for Plantations (II); Legitimate Allocation of Forest for Management (III); Incentives, Benefits and their Restrictions (IV); Implementation (V). The State allocates land to residents for the establishment and management of plantations in order to reforest and enrich such lands (art. 5).
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